Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell

Antonio Sanchez Ortiz 

Plot Summary:
This book follows two teenagers named Eleanor and Park, who meet on the bus after Eleanor comes as a new student to the school and Park is forced to sit with her after yelling at her for taking his seat. After this moment they start sitting together on the bus and we start seeing their relationship develop and throughout the book we see the struggles that Eleanor has to face throughout the book that also impact Park.

Critical Evaluation:
This book would be an 8.5/10 since during this book you feel as if you are with the characters and you won't want to let go of the book, but some parts in the story are too "perfect" without little to non-struggles. This book makes you question everyone's background because of how Park has a nice background and Eleanor has a tough background but each has their own struggles. It also makes you realize that you should walk a mile in another person's shoes in order to understand their struggles without judging them.

Mexican Whiteboy by Matt de la Pena

Alicia Arellano


Plot Summary
This book is about a boy named Danny who visits his dad's family in National City. When he gets there he has trouble making friends and he hangs out with his cousin Sofia and her friends. When he gets there he is a really shy person and he doesn't know anybody besides his cousin Sofia and her friends.

Excerpt
" He's Mexican, because his family's Mexican, but he's not really Mexican. His skin is dark like his grandma's sweet coffee, but his insides are as pale as the cream she mixes in. Danny holds his pencil above the paper, thinking : I'm white boy among Mexicans, and a Mexican among white boys.''
   
Critical Evaluation 
This book deserves a 10 out 10 because it talks about how a boy doesn't know any Spanish and he has to go with his dad family in National City, a city where most Mexicans live. He has  to try to make new friends but he is a really shy boy who only talks to his cousin Sofia at first and then after he starts talking to other people.

Goth Girl Rising by Barry Lyga

Antonio Sanchez Ortiz 

Plot Summary:
This book is set 6 months after The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy and Gothgirl, but instead of it being The Fanboy”s perspective, it is Kyra's perspective (Goth Girl). Kyra throughout the story is plotting her revenge against Fanboy since she believes that he never wrote her or tried to communicate with her while she was away in Maryland Mental Health Unit. Throughout the story we also see her changing to find who she really is.

Quote:
“As angry as I was at Fanboy, as much as I hated him, I still cared about Schemata . So I called him that night and I told him what was wrong with it, and I thought that was going to be it, but...God! Eff him! Eff him!”(51)
This quote shows how Kyra hates Fanboy deeply but still cares about the comic book that he made, so her feelings seem to be a mess at this scene of the story.

Critical Evaluation:
This book would be 10/10. It keeps you on your toes wanting to know more about what is happening and the character development of Kyra is one of the best I’ve seen. It also has plenty of things we can relate to as teenagers. Also had many humorous moments and twists to keep the story enticing.

Looking for Alaska by John Green

Nathaly Ramirez

PLOT SUMMARY
Looking for Alaska is about a student who is looking for the adventure of his life. and is sent to a school like his father went to. He meets two people who end up being like family. Miles, also known as "Pudge", introduces him to a girl named Alaska who he falls in love with. In his journey for a "great perhaps" he starts to drink and smoke. He is faced with many challenges. the love of his life is in danger and soon she will no longer be scared, she will lose all the sadness but the decision she made was totally not okay. He is torn apart but continues on with life for her. But did he ever find his great perhaps?.

CRITICAL EVALUATION
For this book I give it a 9 out of 10. This book is totally shocking and suspenseful. There is a lot of inappropriate situations that we will all eventually face. A lot of lessons learned, and a lot of sadness throughout.